Somerset Tax Protest A Huge Success

On June 9 concerned and upset residents of Somerset County, especially residents of Princess Anne, lined the street to advocate for lower property taxes, constant yield, and the massive 10 cent Princess Anne property tax increase from the day before.

This was the largest protest that the County has seen as over 35 citizens took to the meeting and the street including those whom joined out of nowhere.

Somerset County Commissioners did lower the County rate by 2 cents and said they are working towards a constant yield. The property tax cut and the resolve for constant yield garnered praise from the residents but they said more needed to be done.

Somerset County is one of the highest tax burdened Counties in Maryland and has a limited business base. The move by Princess Anne clearly indicates a refusal to adhere to constant yield where the property tax rate adjusts to property assessments so that the same amount of income is received each year. This compensates for unfair assessments that Maryland residents face every year.

The result is an unnecessary load that tax payers have to carry each year and takes away from their hard earned money that they need to to just get by in Maryland's economic climate.

Lower Shore Americans For Prosperity is actively working on the property tax issue and this is their first of many victories to come.

If you would like to get more involved please contact Joe at eqnox@hughes.net as AFP is training and educating the Lower Shore so burdened citizens can be effective.

AFP-Maryland contributes to Tax Cut Victory

I want to relay some great news out of Harford County. On Friday night, the Harford County Council provided some tax relief to the property owners of Harford County. Instead of the projected $0.09/$100 increase in taxes, the Council reduced the increase to about $0.07/$100. Under intense pressure from a coalition of concerned voters, the County Council made the first step in the right direction.

Last month AFP-Maryland, along with the Campaign for Liberty (C4L), Marylanders for Fair Property Taxation (MFPT), the Rt. 40 Republican Club and other concerned citizens formed a coalition called the “Harford Property Tax Revolt”. This coalition, made up of the thousands of Harford taxpayers our organizations individually represent, was formed to urge the County Council to set the property tax rate to “constant yield”. “Constant yield” is the rate at which the county government would collect the exact amount of taxes they did in the previous fiscal year, and in Harford County the difference between constant yield and the proposed rate was over 9%. Many residents have seen the values of their property tumble anywhere from 8% to 20%, so asking to drop the rate 9% was not out of the question!

Pat McGrady, a local property owner and lead organizer of the Havre de Grace “Taxpayer Tea Party”, was nominated to lead the Harford Property Tax Revolt. After showing a presence at the original public budget hearings, we decided to throw another Tea Party on the day the county budget was introduced to the Council. Over 200 taxpayers showed with home made signs to have their voice heard. I, along with about 10 others, spoke to the crowd about the importance of holding our elected officials accountable. County Executive David Craig (R-Harford County) defended his spending priorities and attempted to line up supporters into the Council meeting (many of them wearing “Support the Budget” pins).

However, this did not stop our momentum. The very next week the Council met again to start amending the proposed budget. Before the public hearing, the Harford Property Tax Revolt had citizens lining the sidewalks in front of the Council chambers demanding property relief. During the public hearing, 200 of our supporters jammed into the Council chambers to show support. Our folks stuck it out through the FIVE HOUR session only to be told that a vote on the property tax rate would not be held until Thursday (two days later).

It was after this hearing, that the elected officials finally realized we weren’t just a bunch of lunatics. Harford Property Tax Revolt was just the voice of many who are frustrated with the ever-expanding role of government, whether it be federal, state, and yes, local! In between the Council sessions, members of our coalition met with the County Executive and the County Council president to discuss our view points. Both conversations were very productive, and I believe contributed to our victory.

When they finally voted, it was unanimous. The 5 Republicans and 2 Democrats all voted to reduce the county’s portion of the property tax rate. According to a budget expert in Harford County, this is the first time the council has ever cut the rate! While the cut did not meet our expectations, it was a step in the right direction. On top of that, AFP got a new recruit. Joan Ryder, who was instrumental in the organization and recruitment of the coalition, will now be chairwoman of our newest chapter, AFP-Harford!

A few lessons AFP learned from this:
1. Select proper leadership – Pat McGrady was a valuable asset. She knew her facts and she and her family spoke from the heart. They own a property management company and their livelihood depends on the property tax rate.
2. Find good partners – AFP had great partners in C4L and MDers for Fair Property Taxation. MFPT President Roy Whiteley had been working on property tax issues for years and was a great resource of knowledge.
3. Do not make the argument personal – many folks wanted to make this a personal battle with County Executive Craig by bringing up salary for staff or other non-related issues. If you want to be successful, you simply cannot do that. I believe CE Craig is a man with common sense and integrity. When we met with him, I respected his opinion, and I believe he respected mine. As we head into next year's budget cycle, our coalition will have a seat at the table because this was about his budget, not about his personal life or staff.
4. Emails and phone calls – at every protest and Tea Party we encouraged everyone to email and call their Council representative and urge them to cut property taxes. I believe the Council members got a good number of emails, and it made a difference in their opinions.

Important Info Next Week

Local citizens of Somerset County and Dorchester County have been researching the proposed tax increases via property.

Preliminary research shows that tax increases will affect taxpayers by having them pay around 6-7% more.

We will have a full report next week so you can make an informed opinion.

The general question is when will elected officials draw a line in the sand and come up with an alternative to increasing taxes through some form of tax; whether direct or indirect?

When will this stop?

Lower Shore Chapter Gaining Steam

The Lower Shore chapter of Americans for Prosperity had its second meeting last night and its clear people are calling for action. Many of us have depended on somebody else to take care of the fight against expanding government and growing taxation that we see on at an every level.

For years, we thought our leaders and representatives were looking out for us, the people. We have gone about our daily business with the trust and the hope that this belief was true. We know now it is not.

We realized that if we don’t fight back, who will fight for us? If we don’t fight now, when will we?

The time is now and I am asking you to please join with us to work on local state and federal issues that infringe on our freedom. Together we are strong. We need to build this network and we need to build our strength as a group. Please talk to your friends and neighbors and bring them along to the next scheduled events.

Tax Protest- Somerset County: Tuesday June 9th at 2pm in Princess Anne. This is our first call to action to our government, as a chapter, so please make every effort to be there. Details to follow.

Please write letter to:

Somerset County Commissioners Office
Attention: James Ring
11916 Somerset Avenue
Princess Anne, MD 21853

Our next meeting is scheduled for June 16 at 7pm. Please mark your calendars and bring your friends. Location details to follow. We are looking for a permanent meeting spot, so if you have any suggestions for a central location off of 13 where we can have some privacy we would appreciate any offers.

The next Salisbury Tea Party is 9am – 12 noon on July 4th at the city courthouse steps. Be there!

I want to thank the people who have stepped up to chair various committee positions. Steve Willing has offered to be the chair for the Somerset committee. Patrick Nelms has offered to serve for an Education Committee, Co-chaired by Michael Calpino. Mike Brewington is heading up the Second Amendment Chair position and is starting a NRA chapter here on the shore.

We will continue to build this network, educate ourselves on local, state, and national policy while we learn how to effectively make our voices heard. We want to know what issues concern you the most. We want to hear your ideas and we want you to get your friends involved.

WE, together, are Americans For Prosperity!

Julie Brewington

Americans for Prosperity, Lower Shore VP

americansforprosperitymd@comcast.net

Anne Arundel Meeting

7pm Tuesday June 2nd will be the first meeting of the Anne Arundel Chapter of Americans for Prosperity Maryland.

The meeting will be held at Mike's Crab House at 3030 Riva Road, Riva Maryland.

We will be further organizing and will be setting goals for the Chapter to achieve in Anne Arundel and for the State to keep the Tea Party movement going strong!

It is important to attend as we have much planed and without you we will not be able to accomplish our goals!

Please contact Aaron Jones for more information.

Hope to see you there,

Aaron

annapolisteaparty@gmail.com

Americans for Prosperity Growing on the Eastern Shore

The Lower Shore AFP (Americans for Prosperity) had our first official meeting where we reached out to the folks who attended the Salisbury Tea Party and like minded individuals. The response was great. These average citizens are some of the most impressive people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. These are People who have a desire to get involved in influencing policy and legislation on a local, state, and even national level for the better.

Americans for Prosperity is something I am very proud to be a part of.

On Tuesday May 19th, 50 people came with a desire to continue the Tea Party movement, fight for limited government, and economic freedom. The people that attended are concerned about the future of our country and the heavy tax burden that has been saddled on our children and grandchildren. Everyone agreed that the local concerns currently are the property tax hikes in Somerset and Dorchester County, the downzoning attempts in Wicomico, Second Amendment rights, the state budget, and future taxes.

Many raised concerns about the leadership in our state and the liberal tax policies that are bound to affect us all. The opportunity to cut spending by 1% to rescind the current state sales tax from 6% back to 5%, was a popular notion.

Our board of directors is Joe Collins, who will serve as President, Julie Brewington, who will serve as VP, and Angela Donahoe, who will serve as Secretary. We have a group that will be designing the website for our local chapter. Many others expressed a desire to get involved and head up various committees.

We have planned a workshop for Wednesday, March 27th at 7pm at the Bay land Aviation Office at the Salisbury Airport, located at 5279 Airport Road, Salisbury, MD 21804. At this workshop we will be coaching and training people how to write effective letters to the editor in local publications and blogs that will make an immediate impact in our community.

By attending, you will learn touse these skills to advocate effectively and get your voice heard. It is of the utmost importance that we build our network. There is power in numbers and we must build our local chapter of AFP in order influence policy and legislation regarding our taxes. If we hope to tackle the federal issues we must start here at home.

The movement is growing. Come be a part of it and bring your friends!

We look forward to seeing you then!

Thanks,

Julie Brewington, Lower Shore VP

americansforprosperitymd@comcast.com

Is There A Bottom Line on County Taxes?

Across Maryland there have been proposed tax increases on the county level. Harford just had a revolt protesting increased property taxes. Dorchester and Somerset have followed suit with proposing tax increases.

Mismanaging taxpayers’ dollars through pork barrel projects or spending more than they should is a major issue at the State and Local Levels. This wasting of hard earned money and the subsequent taxes, as if taxing is the only solution in elected officials heads, reduces the economic security of each citizen.

Land and property values are a constant source of money for politicians so they can grow government bigger when other avenues do not exist. Big bureaucratic government is a major reason why our Country is in the bad shape and why people organized the Tea Parties.

The question is "where and what is the bottom line" for these local tax increases?

For unchecked politicians having the tax and spend mentality there is no bottom line what-so-ever. These individuals abusing your hard earned wages will not stop unless they are presented with opposition and an accompanying alternative.

The alternative is for elected officials to give the market the best climate to prosper. Like raising chicken and cows if you don't give them food, water, and place to grow they will become exhausted. Without available funds for businessmen and hard working citizens to invest as they choose citizens will exhaust their savings and investments.

Climates for growth stem from reducing taxes and fees. This allows for business owners to invest in their businesses that create jobs allowing people to be providers for their families. Lower taxes create more economic stability for the common citizen to sustain themselves.

High taxes and fees take that ability to become prosperous and be a provider. The end result is more dependence on the government and them telling you how best to spend your money. An unecessary burden is thus created.

Now is the time to stand up against these burdening tax increases. In Wicomico County farmers and concerned citizens stood up to a downzoning bill that infringed on land owners’ rights.

That bill was defeated by one vote.

An organized voice will make a difference!

We will have further coverage on these proposed tax increases as they are being researched.